The present invention relates to a knit design system for creating a design of a knitted fabric knitted with a flat knitting machine. More particularly, the present invention relates to a knit design system for creating a design of a seamless knitted fabric which is knitted in such a manner that its sleeves and bodies are joined seamlessly.
A seamless knitted fabric, such as a sweater and a one-piece, is knitted seamlessly in such a manner that both sleeves are knitted in a tubular form in parallel with a front body and a back body and, thereafter, the both sleeves are joined to the bodies. Then, the bodies are knitted up to the shoulder and joined together at the shoulder. If necessary, some process is given to a collar portion or other portions of the knitted fabric. The seamless knitting is ended after this manner.
When this seamless knitted fabric is knitted with a flat knitting machine, a knit design system is used to create a design of basic knitting data, while monitoring the design displayed on a monitor. The design data created, including the data on the front body, back body, and sleeves, is represented on the monitor in such a way that the sleeves are arranged in parallel with the front body and back body and also are joined thereto at points at which the joining work is started. When the design of the seamless knitted fabric is created, constraints on the design of the sleeves around armholes of the front body and back body to which the sleeves are joined must be taken into consideration.
When the design of the seamless knitted fabric thus created is changed in size or resized, an operator displays the design to be changed in size on the monitor, first, and, then, directs the locations of the size changes and inserts in the design a space corresponding to a desired number of stitches in a widthwise or lengthwise direction of the locations or deletes the data, to increase or decrease the size of the design. In order to keep continuity of the pattern of the design, a basic knitting pattern is depicted in the space inserted in the design when the size is increased.
After the design is changed in size or resized by inserting or deleting the data of the design in the widthwise or lengthwise direction of the locations, if there are any locations at which the design loses its outline shape and an irregular profile line appears, the operator amend such an irregular line into a regular profile line.
When the design of the seamless knitted fabric is changed in size or resized, the operator must consider, for example, on how many stitches in the real knitted fabric is increased or decreased by the desired size changes of the design, or conversely, on to what extent the design is changed in size by the insertion or deletion of the data on a certain number of stitches. In particular, the operator must satisfy the joining conditions to allow for the design shape of the sleeves.
Further, when a knitting pattern of the basic pattern at a ground of the knitted fabric is a repetitious knitting pattern, like a wide rib, the operator must comprehend the pitch at which the knitting pattern is repeated and also must consider constraints on the knitting and information on the knitting structure, in order not to render the continuity of the repetitious knitting pattern discontinuous, before he/she changes the design in size.
Thus, when the design of the seamless knitted fabric is changed in size or resized, the operator must amend the locations of size changes separately, while considering the constraints on the knitting and the information on the knitting structure, thus requiring proficient knowledge, lots of troublesome works and time.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a knit design system that can facilitate the size changes of the design of a knit product.
The present invention is directed to a novel knit design system capability of displaying a design of a knit product on a monitor to make size changes of the design, the knit design system comprising: grading line directing means for directing grading lines at locations of size changes with respect to the design displayed on the monitor; grading line setting means for setting information on design modification with respect to the grading lines directed by the grading line directing means; and operating means for making size changes of the design with reference to the grading line directed by the grading line directing means and the modification data set by the grading line setting means.
It is preferable that the grading line setting means allows correlation of the grading lines that are mutually affected by the size changes among the grading lines directed by the grading line directing means and also allows a setting of a ratio of deviation for each of the correlated grading lines.
It is preferable that the knit design system further comprises profile line transforming means for transforming an irregular profile line in an area of the design changed in size by the operating means to a regular profile line.
Also, it is preferable that the knit design system further comprises pattern drawing means for depicting a pattern in the area of the design at the pattern side of the transformed profile line with reference with the basic pattern of the pattern of the design after the profile line of the design is transformed by the profile line transforming means.